Re: XTOL and TMAX developing recipes

[John Sparks <sparks@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Dan Cardish <dcardish@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>At 06:08 PM 10-02-97 GMT, John wrote:
>[snip]
>>Actually, I believe diluting Xtol (like most developers) increases grain
>>(i.e.  enhances grain).  This is because the concentration of sodium
>>sulfite is lower in the more dilute developer and so has less solvent
>>effect on the grains.  I think your first reading was the right one.
>
>You may be right, but wouldn't the lesser concentration of sulphite be
>compensated by the longer developing time usually used in diluted developers?

The way I understand it, it doesn't work that way.  The solvent effect
is increases faster with concentration than with time.  Another way to
look at it is that the solvent is affected greater by dilution than the
development rate.  So to get the same solvent effect in a dilute developer,
you would have to develop the film to a much higher contrast.

John Sparks

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